Baxter International Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:BAX)

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Traders acquired 28,850 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 416% compared to the average volume of 5,587 put options.

Baxter International Trading Down 4.2%

Baxter International stock traded down $0.89 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $20.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,993,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,628,189. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $18.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.37 billion, a PE ratio of -30.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.59. Baxter International has a 1 year low of $17.40 and a 1 year high of $37.74.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.88 billion. Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 17.38% and a negative net margin of 3.09%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.80 EPS. Baxter International has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 0.520-0.570 EPS and its FY 2025 guidance at 2.350-2.400 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Baxter International will post 2.48 EPS for the current year.

Baxter International Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a dividend of $0.01 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -6.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Baxter International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dodge & Cox lifted its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 57,396,370 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,306,915,000 after acquiring an additional 5,274,750 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Baxter International by 2.6% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,882,960 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $388,416,000 after purchasing an additional 326,652 shares during the period. Greenhaven Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Baxter International by 70.0% during the fourth quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 10,693,223 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $204,347,000 after buying an additional 4,404,874 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 1.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,638,629 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $231,304,000 after buying an additional 97,687 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,515,928 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $57,243,000 after buying an additional 615,100 shares during the period. 90.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Baxter International from $25.00 to $21.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Baxter International in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Argus downgraded Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Baxter International from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Baxter International from $36.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Baxter International currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.30.

About Baxter International

Baxter International Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products, pharmaceutical therapies and biotechnology-based solutions. The company’s primary business activities are organized around renal care, medication delivery, acute therapies, pharmacy automation, surgical care and biotechnology. Baxter’s offerings are designed to support patient care in hospitals, dialysis centers, nursing homes and other healthcare facilities worldwide.

In the renal care segment, Baxter provides hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis systems, water treatment equipment and related disposables, including dialyzers, bloodlines and catheters.